GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2019
SESSION LAW 2019-94
HOUSE BILL 52
AN ACT to allow lands owned by the town of wrightsville beach to be used for the benefit of the public and to allow the town to regulate certain private businesses operating on those lands.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1. Section 1 of Chapter 246 of the Public Laws of 1939, as amended by Chapter 618 of the Session Laws of 1981 and Section 1 of S.L. 2018‑103, reads as rewritten:
"Section 1. That all land
filled in, restored, and made, and to be filled in, restored and made, as the
result of the recitals in preamble of this Act, which will exist between the
present Eastern property line of the lot owners at present bordering on said
ocean, and the low water mark of the Atlantic Ocean, after the work referred to
in the preamble hereof, is completed, shall be within the corporate limits of
the Town of Wrightsville Beach, and so much of said lands so filled in,
restored and made, which will lie West of the property line to be defined and
determined by Section Two of this Act, is hereby granted and conveyed in fee
simple to the land owner, to the extent that his land abuts thereon, and the
balance of said land lying East of said building line, to be fixed and
determined by Section Two of this Act, is hereby granted and conveyed in fee
simple to the Town of Wrightsville Beach; provided, however, that no
building or structure shall be built and erected on said made and built up
land lying East of the property line to be defined and set out in Section Two
of this Act, and provided further that all made and constructed land lying
East of the property line shall be, at all times, kept open for the purpose of
streets and highways for the use of the public, and further for the development
and uses as a public square or park, to include the construction of public
restrooms, gazebos, and typical park facilities in such public squares or
parks, and further for the construction of public beach access facilities, Act
shall be used only for public purposes, except as otherwise provided herein, as
the governing authorities of the Town of Wrightsville Beach, by ordinance,
shall determine; and provided further that the governing authorities of the
Town of Wrightsville Beach are authorized, but not required, to license and
regulate the operation of private businesses on the made and built up land
lying East of the property line to be defined and set out in Section Two of
this Act; and provided further that if any such property as is hereby
granted and conveyed to the Town of Wrightsville Beach, shall cease to be used
for the purposes or in the manner prescribed in this Act, it shall revert and
become the property of the State of North Carolina, and provided further that
the owners of the property abutting on said newly made or constructed land,
shall, in front of their said property, possess and keep their rights, as if
littoral owners, in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, bordering on said newly
acquired and constructed land."
SECTION 2. This act is effective when it becomes law.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 8th day of July, 2019.
s/ Ralph E. Hise
Presiding Officer of the Senate
s/ Tim Moore
Speaker of the House of Representatives